Gibson

This is an appeal from a judgment of the superior court of Alameda County, by which the defendant was convicted of a felony. The chief point made in the appeal is that the court erred in instructing the jury upon the subject of flight.

The appellant contends that the sole direct testimony upon which the conviction is based is that of the prosecuting witness, Thelma Lee, who is alleged to have been his victim. This testimony is sufficient to sustain the verdict, if believed by the jury to be true. It is admitted to be a fact that the defendant left the town in which the crime is alleged to have been committed on the evening of the day on which it was alleged to have been committed, and remained away for some months. His flight was explained by himself and his mother as not being prompted by consciousness of guilt, but rather because of an unfortunate previous experience when he was falsely accused of grand larceny and, notwithstanding his innocence, lie was compelled to “lay in jail” for several weeks before being finally discharged.

Upon this record, and other facts not necessary to recite, the trial court gave certain instructions to the jury upon the subject of appellant’s…